Biri II Ibrahim
Mai of the Kanem–Bornu Empire
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Biri Ibrahim (Biri Ibrāhīm bin Dunama), enumerated as Biri II,[1] and also recorded as Kashim Biri and Uthman,[2] was mai (ruler) of the Kanem–Bornu Empire in the mid-to-late 13th century.[3] A son of mai Dunama II Dibalemi, Biri Ibrahim ruled during a several decade-long period of succession conflict between the sons of Dunama.[2] The precise sequence and chronology of mais is unclear in this period, which lasted from Dunama's death to the rise of Ibrahim I Nikale.[3]
| Biri II Ibrahim | |
|---|---|
| Mai of the Kanem–Bornu Empire | |
| Reign | 13th century |
| Predecessor | Kade I Aujami (?) |
| Successor | Jalil (?) |
| Died | Njimi, Kanem |
| Spouse | Kagudi |
| Issue | Ibrahim I Nikale |
| Dynasty | Sayfawa dynasty |
| Father | Dunama II Dibalemi |
| Mother | Zainab |
Sources
Biri Ibrahim is recorded in lists of Kanem–Bornu rulers (girgams) translated by Heinrich Barth (1851),[4] Gustav Nachtigal (1881),[5] and Moïse Landeroin (1911).[6] Richmond Palmer (1936) and Yves Urvoy (1941) used the name Kashim Biri instead.[2][7] Stewart (1989) erroneously listed Biri Ibrahim and Kashim Biri as two separate mais,[1] whereas Lange (1984) and Bosworth (2012) like previous authors considered them the same figure.[3][8]
According to Barth's girgam, Biri Ibrahim was remembered as a conqueror, though it was not recorded what conquests he made. He reportedly died at Njimi, the capital of the empire.[4] Biri's mother was named Zainab[2] and hailed from the "tribe of the Lekmamma".[4] The earliest reference to the Fulani in the territory of the Kanem–Bornu Empire dates to Biri's reign, when they arrived as envoys of the Mali Empire.[9]
| Author | Reign | Predecessor | Successor | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barth (1851) | 20 years (1288–1306) | Kade I Aujami | Ibrahim I Nikale | [4] |
| Nachtigal (1881) | 16 years (1351–1367) | Selema III[a] | Ibrahim I Nikale | [5] |
| Landeroin (1911) | 17 years (1287–1304) | Selema III[a] | Ibrahim I Nikale | [6] |
| Palmer (1936) | 21 years (1279–1300) | Kade I Aujami | Ibrahim I Nikale | [2] |
| Urvoy (1941) | 20 years (1242–1262) | Kade I Aujami | Jalil | [7] |
| Lange (1984) | 19 years (1277–1296) | Kade I Aujami | Ibrahim I Nikale | [8] |
| Stewart (1989) | 28 years (1260–1288, Kashim Biri) | Kade I Aujami | Biri II Ibrahim | [1] |
| 19 years (1288–1307, Biri II) | Kashim Biri | Ibrahim I Nikale | [1] | |
| Bosworth (2012) | ? | Kade I Aujami | Jalil | [3] |